Cleaning tubular and other vessels.



T. RIGBY & N. TESTRUP. CLEANING TUBULAR AND oTHER VBSSELS.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.6,'1911.

Patented Aug. 4, 1914,

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TI RIGBY & N. TESTRUP.

CLEANING TUBULAR AND OTHER VBSSELS.

APPLICATION FILED DBO.6,1B11,

Patented Aug. 4, 1914.

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THOMAS RIGBY, OF DUMFRIES, SCOTLAND, AND NILS TESTRUP, OF LONDON, ENG-LAND, ASSIGNORS, BY MESNE ASSIGNIVIENTSL T0 WETCARIBONIZING LIMITED, OF

LONDON, ENGLAND.

CLEANING TUBULAR AND OTHER VESSELS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 4, 1914.

To aZZ whom it may concern Be it known that we, THOMAS RIGBY, a subjectof the Kingof Great Britain and Ireland, and residing at Station Hotel,Dumfries, Scotland, and NILs TEs'rnUr, a subject o-f the King of GreatBritain and Ireland, and residino' at 6 Broad Street Place, London, E.@,ngland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in theCleaning of Tubular and other Vessels, of which the following is aspecification. i

This invention relates to the removal of deposited matter from or theprevention of deposit in vessels employed in the treatment or handlingof matters liable to produce deposits. An example 'of such an apparatusis the apparatus which has been proposed for wet carbonizing peat.

This invention is more particularly applicable to apparatus such as isdescribed in the pending application filed by one of us, and bearingSerial No. 6180,99. It has been observed that in the inside of the innertubes of apparatus of the latter kind, the peat material is liableduring the heating operation to deposit at certain points, which depositrapidly accumulates, and frequently leads to choking, local overheating,and may eventually lead to rupture of the tube, and generally speaking,is a source of low efhciency.

This invention has for its object to provide means particularly adaptedto remove this defect, but applicable also to any appliance wheresimilar difficulty may arise.

According to this invention, the deposit, if any is formed, isdislodged, or the prevention of deposition is obtained by occasionallycausing, when necessary, an abnormally rapid and preferably suddenmotion of the fluid within the vessel. This may be caused to occurperiodically, and if desired, automatically, and in the preferred formeffected by establishing communication between a suitable part of theapparatus and a space at a considerably lower pressure than that whichexists within the same.

The accompanying `diagrammatic drawings show the invention applied inone way, by way of example, to a Wet carbonizing apparatus, such as isshown and described in the application. above referred to, only suchparts thereof being indicated in these drawings as are necessary to theunderstanding of the present invention.

The form of theinvention shown is one in which the desired effect isobtained by providing a cap capable of application to the end of theinner carbonizing tube, and

formed with an outlet suitably controlled to allow of placing the insideof the tube in communication with a space at a lower pres-4 ended innertubes g, which extend through the header a, passing through stuffingboxes m in the same, and enter the peat outlet headers b, passing alsothrough stuffingboxes m in the headers Z). Within the headers b areprovided a plurality of caps r, adapted when suitably placed closely tofit the extremities of the tubes g. Each cap is carried by a tube cZ,which opens into it, and which passes out through a stuiiing box n, fromthe chamber b. This tube extends into and through a third header c,passing into and out of thelatter through suitable stufling boxes o ando', and being closed at its farther extremity by a suitable screw plug(l. It is adapted to be capable of sliding longitudinally through thestuling boxes, and has a long bearing in the wall of the header c, at s.The tube Z has at that part of it which is within the latter longbearing when the tube and adapter are fully retracted from the tubes g,an orifice p formed by cutting away a part of its periphery. Each tubeis provided at the part between the headers c and d with suitablydisposed collars u and o, between which the' v be pushed on to the same.

ltheend of the corresponding tube gby the action of the arm 7L co-actingwith the collars a and c' causing the tube l of the cap to This action,however, causes the orifice p to over-run the long bearing s, andtherefore puts the inside of thetube g in which the peat is containedunder high pressure into communication through the cap and tube al andorifice p 'with the inside of the header c, which is vmaintained at alower, e. lg., atmospheric pressure. Thisleads to avery sudden 'rush ofpeat from and through the tube yg, and this violent motion causes y'anydeposit which has formed to be loosened and dislodged. The period duringwhich this communication is maintained may be determined by the tendencywhich the material under treatment has to form deposits, but isrelatively short, the return motion of the 'piston rod 0c causingthetube dto be 'retracted, and the communication to be interrupted. Theheaders c are connected to the `storage tank of the installation, or toany other suitable reservoir to prevent waste of peat. Any suitablemeans 'other than that shown may of course be adopted for causingthereciprocation of the caps.

It is to be observed that the 'number of tubes which are at the sametime submitted to the cleansing treatment should be limited so as notunduly to interrupt the flow of peat through the apparatus, andtherefore to interrupt the Working conditions of the apparatus as -awhole. By `effecting cleaning at very frequent intervals,-such as sayevery ten minutes, for eachtube, the formation of any substantialdeposit may be altogether prevented, and a 4smaller lperiod of openingand a smaller amount of material 4ejected than in removing depositwhich'has `accumulated during a relatively long period. The screw caps gallow of access for cleaning the tubescZ, without dismantling theapparatus.

The application of cleaning `means according to the present inventionpreventing `the formation of deposit while resulting in an increase inthe life of the apparatus and the period during Awhich the same vmaysafely be employed rwithout overhauling, also leads to an-increasepntheheatv efliciency Aof the apparatus `which may lbe-such as .tofallowcf-'substantial reductionfof the Iheating area of the same byvirtue of the increase in heat conducting capacity of the tube wallsboth in the heated Zone and in the Zone where regeneration of the heatoccurs.

Having now described our invention, what we claim as new and desire tosecure byLetters Patent is 1. Apparatus for heating peat, comprising incombination a plurality of peat heating elements, a vessel receiving thepeat therefrom, another vessel at a lower pressure than that existingwithin the heating elements, and means by which the latter vessel can beplaced in communication with the heating elements while simultaneouslydisconnecting the latter from the receiving vessel in order thereby tocause dislodgment of peat deposited within the heating elements.

2. Apparatus for heating peat, comprising in combination a plurality ofdouble concentric tubes through which the peat is continuously passedwhile being heated, a vessel receiving the peat therefrom, anothervessel at a lower pressure than that existing within 'the tubes, andmeans by which the lower pressure vessel can be placed in communicationwith any of the double concentrictubes while simultaneously causing "thelatterto be disconnected from the receiving vessel in order thereby toeffect removal of y peat deposited within the concentric tubes.

3. Apparatus for heating peat, comprisying in combination la pluralityofdouble concentric heating tubes, a vessel in which the outlet endsofsaid tubes A'are situated, another vessel at a lower pressure thanthat existing within said tubes, and means by which the outlet ends ofthe tubes are utilized to enable the lower pressure vessel to be placedin communication with the interior of the tubes and at the sametime bedisconnected from the receiving vessel for the purpose of removing peatdeposited within the heating tubes.

4. Apparatus for heating peat, comprising in combination a 'plurality ofdouble concentric heating tubes, a vessel in which the outlet ends ofsaid tubes are "situated, another vessel at a lower pressure than thatexisting within said tubes, a cap adapted to be placed on the outlet endof each tube, a tubular'member extending from within each cap to thelower pressure vessel in such a mannerthat when a cap is placed on theoutlet end of `any of the heating tubes communication is establishedbetween the latter and the lower Apressure vessel, and simultaneouslyVmatters, comprisingini combination an open- Aended tubularvelement, avesselin proximity to Vsaid `appa'ratus 'at la lowerpressure than thatWithin the tubular element, a cap adapt- In testimony whereof We havesigned our ed to be applied to the open end of said elenames to thisspecification in the presence of ment, a tube extending from Within saidtwo subscribing Witnesses. cap and passing through said vessel, said TRIGBY 5 tube having a port near the end remote from NILS TES'TRUP thecap, and a bearing Within Which said tube can be slid longitudinallyWithin said Witnesses as to signature of Thomas Rigby:

vessel to apply the cap to the open end of M. ATKINSON ADAM, the tubularelement and at the same time vBERTRAM H. MATTHEWS.

10 uncover the port in the tube, thereby plac- Witnesses as to signatureof Nils Testrup:

ing the tubular element and the vessel in BERTRAM HARRY MATTHEWS,communication. E. COURTNEY WALKER.

`Uopies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe commissioner of Patent,

Washington, l). C.

